Paula walked into the hospital, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves. She had an appointment with one of the doctors here, a meeting she had arranged after a series of phone calls. As she stepped into the elevator and ascended to the second floor, her mind was a jumble of memories and unanswered questions.
Arriving at the office, Paula knocked gently before opening the door. Inside, a man in his early forties stood by a desk cluttered with medical charts and papers. He had thick-rimmed glasses perched on the bridge of his nose, giving him an intellectual, somewhat absent-minded appearance.
His tousled hair and slightly wrinkled shirt suggested a man who had spent more time immersed in work than in personal grooming. There was a faint air about him—like he might have been surrounded by admiring students or colleagues during his younger years.